Sandy Springs resident Fran Farias has been named Rotarian of the Year for Rotary District 6900, which covers about half of Georgia.
Dist. Gov. Roy Strickland presented Farias the award at the District Conference held in late April. It is the service organization’s highest honor and has been bestowed to 532 Rotarians. Farias also received the award in 2001 and 2003.
Rotary International is a volunteer organization of business leaders who engage in humanitarian activities to promote global goodwill. There are about 1.2 million Rotary club members in 33,000 Rotary clubs worldwide.
“As local leaders and volunteers, Rotarians can help find community solutions to local needs,” Farias said in an April 30 e-mail. “Service is the very purpose of life. It is the rent that we pay for living on this planet.”
Farias joined Rotary in 1996 and currently is a member of the Rotary Club of Sandy Springs. In the past, she served as president of the Rotary Club of Roswell East.
Since January 2009, Farias has served as District 6900 director of service projects. Farias also is on the faculty of the Rotary Leadership Institute and in 1997 was named a Paul Harris Fellow, which is a coveted designation for major donors.
An insurance agent, Farias has operated her own State Farm agency in Sandy Springs since 1990.
Farias also has been active with other community groups. In April, she was elected president of the Sandy Springs Women’s Club and is an elder at the Roswell Presbyterian Church. She has participated in six builds with Habitat for Humanity and served on the board of Homestretch, a nonprofit group that provides housing for needy people.
Farias is a 1998 graduate of Leadership Sandy Springs and has worked with the Sandy Springs/Perimeter Chamber of Commerce.